K' 



NEW CHAPTER 



^t0lor2 of tl)e Concorii Jfiigl)!: 

V GEOTOS" MI^UTE-MEE" 

At tlie Nortli Bridge, April 19, 1775. 



APPENDIX: 

I. TOWNS ENGAGED IN THE FIGHTING AND MOVEMENTS, 
LOSSES, ETC. 

3. MONUMENTS, MEMORIALS, ETC., ERECTED TO COMMEM- 
ORATE THE EVENTS OF THE DAY. 



By WM. W. WHEILDON. 



B O S T ON : 

LEE & SHEPARD, PUBLISHERS, 

No. 10 Milk Street. 
1SS5. 



Curiosities of History: Boston, September 

Seventeenth, 1680-1880. By William W. Wheil- 
DON. Boston: Lee and Shepard. Second Edition. 
Price $1.00. 

" Mr. William W. Wljeiklon's ' Cuiiosities of History, Boston, Sept. 17, 1630- 
1880,' published bj' Lee and Shepard, is an attractive little book, fresli, and full of 
good old things, -with the motto from WhitUer, — 

' Ringing denrly with a will, 
AVliat siic wasjs Boston still,* 

and ' affectionately dedicated to raj' wife in commemoration of the fifty-first year 
of our married life.' It tells of ancient topography, Boston farming, Puritan 
government, old streets and lanes and names, curious prints, very curious lec- 
tures and proclamations, and winds up with some wholesome remarks on good 
dining. Boston may defy other American cities to produce such a record, and 
Mr. Wheildon may challenge his rivals, if there he any, to make a more enter- 
taining book. It is a delightful mixture of antiquities, curiosities, sage remarks, 
and good temper." — Daily Advertiser. 

"Mr. AVilliam W. Wheildon, who is well known as a student and lover of 
ancient lore, has publislied a very timely and interesting volume, entitled 'Curi- 
osities of History.' It contains a dozen or more papers upon matters connected 
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fields, Puritan government, persecution of the Quakers, first American news- 
paper, curious Boston lectures, remarkable proclamations, etc. Without aspir- 
ing to the dignity of a historj-, the volume contains a large amount of historical 
material, much of which is exceedingly quaint and curious. Bostonians in 
particular will find it well worth the time spent in reading it, from the infor- 
mation which it gives concerning the early bistoi-y of Boston, and the light which 
it throws upon the old ways and customs." — Boaion Journal. 

"It comes at an interesting time, and is well worth a place in the ".ibrarj"' of 
every one interested in the good old city of which it treats." — Eonton Post. 

"A second edition of W. W. Wheildon's 'Curiosities of History' has just 
been piiblished by Lee and Shepard, the first having been exhausted in less than 
two mouths from the time of its appearance. In this volume the author has 
brought together from a variety of sources a great deal of curious information 
regarding the early history of Boston, and, though much of it is not new to the 
antiquarian student, it is put in condensed shape and systematically arranged. 
Among the topics treated are the topography of Boston, the ferries, the names 
of places, streets, etc., early newspapers, religious persecutions, remarkable 
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" These topics, if thoroughly treated and illustrated with the present resources 
of the antiquarian and the book-manufacturer, might fill a series of magnificent 
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something to any one's knowledge of old Boston. There is novelty in the sec- 
tional grouping, and an occasional rarity like Gov. Shirley's Proclamation of 
Nov. 2, 1744. The author is not a blind admirer of the Puritans." — J^Teto- York 
Nation. 

" Mr. Wheildon, a master In his kind of work, has in this small volume care- 
fully collected, and put into a compact and readable form, every thing connected 
witii the early settlement, progressive growth, and present prosperous condition 
of the city ot' Boston. . . . The writer has a keen sense of the ludicrous, anil in- 
tersperses his narrative with specimens of curious lectures, popubir Puritan 
literature, and curiosities of the market. . . . The picture of Boston, from its 
early settlement, through a growth of two hundred and fifty years, is graphic, 
boldly outlined, and impresBive." — Providence Journal. 



Will be sent hy mail, free of pontage, on receipt of the price. Address 
Box 229, Concord, Mass., or the publishers at Boston. 



NEW CHAPTER 



fcjistorji of tl)c (Jloucorb JTigljt: 

A GEOTOS" MI]5rUTE-MEK 

At tlie North. Bridge, April 19, IT 75. 



APPENDIX: 

1. TOWNS ENGAGED IN THE FIGHTING AND MOVEMENTS, 

LOSSES, ETC. 

2. MONUMENTS, MEMORIALS, ETC., ERECTED TO COMMEM- 

ORATE THE EVENTS OF THE DAY. 



By WM. W. WHEILDON. 



BOSTON: 
LEE & SHEPARD, PUBLISHERS 
No. 10 Milk Street. 
1S85. ■ 



h 






"The Nineteenth of April, 1775: a glorious day for Lexington and 
Concord, for the Towns of Middlesex, for Massachusetts, for America, 
for freedom and the rights of man. Every blow struck for liberty 
among men since the 19th of April, 1775, has but echoed the guns of 
that eventful morning." — \_Concord Seniiinetii, 1S75. 

" If the retreat had not been as precipitate as it was, and God knows 
it could not well have been more so, the ministerial troops must have 
surrendered, or been totally cut off." — [ Washiiigton. 

"Before the 19th of April, 1775, I never had heard a whisper of a 
disposition to separate from Great Britain." — \_jfefferson. 

Speaking of the Concord Fight, Abbe Raynal says, " English blood, 
so often shed in Europe by English hands, irrigates America in its 
turn, and the civil war is commenced." 

Kossuth speaks of the occurrences of the 19th April, as " the opening 
scene of a revolution that is destined to change the character of human 
governments, and the condition of the human race." 

In Hayden's "Dictionary of Dates," London, 1S71, 13th edition, 
under the head of Battles, is given the following definition : "American 
War: Lexington, (Gage, victor, with great loss,) 19th April, 1775." 



r 



]SrEW CHAPTER 



Histoiy of the Concord Figiit. 



It is not veiy remarkable, perhaps, that the centen- 
nial period since the beginning of the revolutionary war 
should ■ be the occasion of bringing to light some new 
matter in relation to its early incidents, in regard to 
which more or less secrecy was preserved and names 
withheld at the time. It seems, from evidence which 
has lately come to the knowledge of the writer, by a 
casually dropped remark concerning the Concord fight, 
that the alarm of the movement of General Gage to seize 
the cannon, stores, and ammunition in Concord, was 
more widely known in Middlesex County than hereto- 
fore supposed. It appears, from the testimony of Mr. 
Artemas Wright, of Ayer, who is a grandson of Mr. 
Nathan Corey, of Groton, that there were several mem- 
bers of the Groton company of minute men at Concord, 
on the morning of the 19th of April, who were in the 
fight at the North Bridge, and joined in the pursuit of 
the British troops in the retreat to Lexington. 



EXCITEMENT OF THE MINUTE-MEN AT GROTON. 



Mr. Wright's Story. 

Mr. Wright says : his grandfather repeatedly told him 
the story, and often talked of the scenes of that day. A 
part of his narration was, that on the day before the 
Concord fight, April i8th, while he w^as ploughing in his 
field, some distance from the middle of the town, he 
received notice of a meeting of the minute men, which, 
of course, demanded immediate attention. It was in the 
afternoon, tow^ard evening, when he received the notifi- 
cation. He at once unhitched his plough, drove his 
oxen home, took down his gun and belt, told his wife 
Molly, as he called her, that he was going away, and 
could not tell when he should come back, and that she 
must take care of the oxen. He then hastened to the 
middle of the town and joined his comrades who had 
assembled there. » 

The circumstance which had induced them to call the 
meeting was the arrival of some brass cannon from 
Concord. Of course the presence of these immediately 
gave rise to discussion and speculation as to the cause 
and the reason of their being sent to Groton from Con- 
cord. Various suggestions were made, the most promi- 
nent of which was a proposition that the company should 
proceed at once to Concord ; but this, when put to vote, 
was determined in the negative, most of the members 
preferring to wait for further intelligence. 

This conclusion, it seems, was not entirely satisfactory 
to all the members of the company, and some of them 



ON THE WAY TO CONCORD. 5 

determined to go at once ; so that, as the story is related 
to the writer, nine of them, with young Corey among 
the number, started for Concord the same evening. 
They travelled all night, carrying lighted pine torches 
a part of the way, and reached Concord at an early hour 
in the morning, entering one side of the town some 
hours before the British troops entered upon the other. 
Mr. Corey said they all went and got some breakfast at 
the house of Col. Barrett, which w^as afterwards visited 
by the British troops in search of the cannon, ammuni- 
tion and stores, most of which had been fortunately 
removed, the day before, to places of safety. After 
getting something to eat they proceeded toward the 
centre of the town, and soon joined the men of Concord, 
and finally were in the ranks of the minute men, at or 
near the North Bridge, where the fight with the British 
troops occurred. They continued with the minute men, 
and followed the retreating troops to Lexington, or 
beyond. 

This is the story related b}^ Mr. Wright, as often 
repeated to him by his grandfather Corey; and this, 
according to the accepted history of the time, and as at 
present understood, appeared to the writer, on the in- 
stant, as wholly improbable. It must still remain so 
unless it can be explained and accounted for in the 
transactions and events of the period. 

The objection to be met and answered is, how could 
the people of Groton, thirty miles from Boston, at about 
the time the British troops were moving toward their 
boats, on the evening of the i8th, know anything of 



O WHAT THE GROTON MEN KNEW. 

Gen. Gage's purpose or design to visit Concord? Of 
course they knew nothing, excepting such information 
as the presence of the brass cannon, which had arrived 
among them, indicated. Probably the men who con- 
veyed the cannon from Concord could not explain the 
matter, and yet it may possibly be true that they had 
learned before they left Concord, or suspected, the 
reason why they were sent; and, if so, would be sure to 
communicate it to the people of Groton. This, when 
we come to think of it, is not very improbable, although 
no reason is given in the votes of the Committee for 
their action. However this may be, the improbable 
story of Mr. Wright may possibly be explained and 
accounted for b}^ the action of the Committee of Safety 
in the matter, by showing that the cannon were sent to 
Groton, and why they came to be sent there at that 
particular time. 



Explanation of the Story. 

Almost every person familiar with the history of this' 
period would, on the instant, reject the story as a- fiction, 
and nothing but entire confidence in the truthfulness of 
the party referred to, and the little probabilit}^ there is of 
his being able to invent such a relation, induced the 
writer to give it a moment's consideration. Turning the 
history of the period over in our mind, the points .of 
which were very familiar, we thought we could see a 
possible explanation of the matter, as a consequence of 



MESSAGE FROM DR. WARREN. 7 

the cautionary action of Warren, and the important 
services rendered at this time by Paul Revere. 

It is well known to most readers and students, who 
are familiar with the histor}^ of this period, that Dr. 
Warren, so far as is known b}^ his own inclination, 
remained in Boston while the Provincial Congress was 
in session at Concord, expressly to observe the action 
and movements of Gen. Gage in this trying period. In 
consequence of some of these movements, especially 
that of launching the transport boats preparatory for use, 
and taking the Grenadiers and Light Infantry off duty, 
Warren determined to send notice of them, and of the 
preparations being made, as he believed, to capture the 
stores at Concord, to Hancock and Adams, then at 
Lexington. 

This message was sent by Paul Revere, on Sunday, 
the i6th of April, 1775, to the effect that the British 
were preparing for an excursion into the country, and it 
was at once understood that the stores and ammunition, 
collected at Concord, were the object. Revere delivered 
his message promptly at Lexington, and returned in the 
afternoon, when, before going across the river from 
Charlestown, he made his arrangements about the signal 
lanterns with Col. Conant, — a matter which, no doubt, 
he had determined and arranged in his own mind, 
during his solitary ride from Lexington. 



ACTION- OF THE COMMITTEE OF SAFETY. 



Action of the Committee of Safety. 

The Provincial Congress, which had been in session 
at Concord, adjourned on Saturday, the 15th of April, 
but the Committees of Safety and Supplies, who had 
control of the military, and other public matters pertain- 
ing thereto, did not adjourn finally on that day. They 
remained at Concord, and held an important meeting on 
Monday morning, the 17th, and, no doubt, commenced 
their proceedings without waiting for the arrival of 
Hancock from Lexington, where he had gone with Sam 
Adams each night during the session of Congress. 

The first votes which the Committees passed, accord- 
ing to the record of their meetings, were as follows : 

" Voted, that two four-pounders, now at Concord, be 
mounted by the Committee of Supplies, and that Col. 
Barrett be desired to raise an Artillery Company, to join 
the Army when raised, etc. ; and, also, that an instructor 
for the use of the cannon be appointed, to be put directly 
in pay. 

'■^ Voted, unanimously, that £6, lawful money, be a 
Captain's pay in an Artillery Company ; that the ist and 
2d Lieutenants have £453.; that the Sergeants have 
42s. per month, etc. 

" Voted, that when these Committees adjourn, it be to 
Mr. Wetherby's, at the Black Horse, Menotomy, on 
Wednesday, at 10 o'clock." 



VOTES TO SEND THE CANNON FROM CONCORD. 9 

After these votes were passed, it is supposed and 
believed, John Hancock arrived from Lexington and 
joined the Committee in their meeting. Of course, he 
immediately communicated to them the important intel- 
ligence which he had received from Dr. Warren the day 
before, so that, without any reconsideration of the votes 
just passed, any adjournment or recess, the record shows 
that they continued the meeting and passed the follow- 
ing votes : 

" Voted, that the four six-pounders be transported to 
Groton, and put under the care of Col. Prescott. 

" Voted, that two seven-inch brass mortars be trans- 
ported to Acton. 

" Voted, that the two Committees adjourn to Mr. 
Wetherby's, at Menotomy, [at] ten o'clock." [Not 
Wednesday, as first voted.] 

The next day (Tuesday) a meeting was held, and it 
was voted that " the two brass two-pounders, and two 
brass three-pounders, be under the care of the Boston 
Company of Artillery, and of Capt. Robinson's (Com- 
pany)." 

[What finally was the disposition of these cannon we 
have no means of knowing ; but, when the approach of 
the British troops became known. Dr. Ripley, in his 
" History of the Fight at Concord," says : "a consider- 
able number of them (Concord minute men) were 
2 



lO EXPLANATION OF THE VOTES. 

ordered to assist the citizens who were actively engaged 
in removing and secreting cannon, military stores, and 
provisions. The cannon were nearly all conveyed to a 
distance, some to adjacent towns, and some were bm-ied 
in the ground, and some under heaps of manure."] 

Numerous other votes were passed for the removal 
and secretion of ammunition, provisions, etc., and the 
Committee adjourned to the next day. 

On Wednesday (19th) the Committee continued its 
session, at Menotomy, (West Cambridge, now Arling- 
ton,) and passed additional votes on the same subject. 

Thus were the votes first passed, before the arrival of 
John Hancock, rescinded, and, of course, the cannon 
were not mounted, no Artillery Company was formed, 
nor teacher employed for their instruction. 

All this was the result of the information from Dr. 
Warren, brought to Lexington by Paul Revere ; to 
Concord by John Hancock, and, we may almost say, 
carried to Groton by the cannon ! It is believed that no 
other explanation can be given of the discrepancies in 
these votes, so entirely different and adverse to each 
other, than that which has been suggested, namely, the 
arrival of Mr. Hancock after the passage of the first 
named votes, and the intelligence brought by him of 
Gen. Gage's movements at Boston. 



SENDING THE CANNON TO GROTON. II 



Sending the Cannon to Groton. 

In accordance with the final votes of the Committee, 
the next morning (Tuesday i8th) the cannon were 
promptly on their wa}^ to Groton, and arrived there late 
in the afternoon, while at Boston, the British troops 
were getting ready to embark in their boats for the op- 
posite side of the river, on their way to Concord. 

In view of what has been said, it may now be pretty 
confidently asked, what information did the appearance 
of these cannon at Groton communicate to the people, 
and especially the minute men of that town? It will be 
recollected that only a short time before this, (26th of 
February), Gen. Gage had sent Col. Leslie to Salem to 
seize some pieces of cannon there, which he failed to 
secure, and this was probably known to. the people of 
Groton at this time. There cannot be a doubt, there- 
fore, putting these two things together, as to the story 
the presence of these cannon told, even if the men who 
carried them had been speechless. 



Action of the Groton Men. 

The proceedings and action which followed, on the 
part of the Groton minute men, were both natural and 
reasonable, and fully authorized the action of the volun- 
teers, even supposing they were moved by curiosit}^ 
alone — a mere desire to see British soldiers. The 



12 GROTON MINUTE-MEN AT CONCORD. 

minute men, as we have stated, were promptly called 
together, and some of them determined to go to Concord 
that night ; and, while Col. Smith was moving his troops 
over the Cambridge marshes and swamps, these patriots 
were on their way to meet them at Concord bridge, 
without knowing who they were to meet or what was in 
store for them. What followed has been stated. The 
Groton minute men arrived, and were among their 
brethren of Concord, Acton, Carlisle, Lincoln, and 
Bedford, in following and harassing the retreating troops, 
and it would seem, from the relation which we have 
given, that the improbability of Mr. Wright's story has 
been removed ; the cannon certainly went to Groton, 
and almost as certainly the Groton minute men came to 
Concord. The minute men of the other towns named, 
were notified of the coming of the British troops by 
special messengers. The cannon sent to Acton, no 
doubt, upon their arrival there on Tuesday (i8th), told 
the same story as did the cannon at Groton ; but, 
being so near to Concord, the citizens very naturally 
concluded that if they were wanted word would be sent 
to them at the earliest moment, as was the case ; but the 
Groton men, though few in number, were the first to 
arrive. 

Mr. Corey, who used to tell his story in relation to the 
Concord fight to his grandchildren in his talk about the 
war, continued in the service of his country, and prior 
to his death a pension was granted to him, (or afterwards 
to his widow,) but nothing was ever received by either 
of them. 



CONFIRMATORY EVIDENCE. I3 



Confirmatory Evidence. 

Since the first mention of this subject by the writer, 
Dr. Samuel A. Green, a native of Groton, has published 
a handsome volume, entitled " Epitaphs from the Old 
Burying Ground in Groton, Mass." One of the inscrip- 
tions, found upon the monument to the memory of Capt. 
Abram Child, contains the following sentence: "He 
was a Lieutenant among the minute men, and aided in 
THE Concord fight and the battle of Bunker Hill, 
'1775." The remainder of the inscription shows that 
Capt. Child went through the war with Washington, 
and was the oldest Captain in the service at the capture 
of Stony Point, in 1779. He was just the man for a 
night expedition to Concord. 

Mr. George William Curtis, in speaking of this inci- 
dent in the history of the Concord fight, in a letter to 
the writer, says : " Your new chapter throws light upon 
the tradition of the horseman at Acton rousing the house 
with the news after midnight on the i8th. The whole 
legend is very interesting." And, we may add, seems 
to be confirmed most unexpectedly from various quarters. 
The Groton men, of course, came down through Acton, 
probably after midnight, and no doubt, with or without 
their burning torches, produced sonie excitement on the 
road. 



14 service of warren and revere. 

Importance of the Service of Warren and 
Revere. 

One result of this story is particularly worthy of notice, 
since it shows very clearly what has scarcely ever been 
considered, or, in fact, alluded to, and that is the im- 
portance of the service rendered by Paul Revere in his 
journey to Lexington, on Sunday prior to the much more 
celebrated midnight ride which followed it. The story 
of this ride, quiet and peaceful as it was, has never been 
immortalized in the lines of the poet ; yet it shows very 
clearly that the preservation of the cannon — nearly all 
that the colony possessed at that time — and probably 
the largest portion of the ammunition and stores at 
Concord, were saved, as we have seen, by the caution- 
ary measures of Dr. Warren, and the essential service 
of Paul Revere, on the Sunday previous to the fight at 
Concord bridge. 

Revere himself makes but very slight mention of this 
Sunday ride. He simpl}^ says: "The Sunday before, 
by desire of Dr. Warren, I had been to Lexington, to 
Messrs. Hancock and Adams, who were at the Rev. 
Mr. Clark's. I returned at night through Charlestown ; 
there I agreed with a Col. Conant, and other gentlemen, 
that if the British went out by water, we would show two 
lanterns in the North Church Steeple, and if by land, 
one as a signal ; for we were apprehensive it would be 
difficult to cross the Charles River, or get over Boston 
Neck." \_Revere^s letter to Dr. Belkna-p.'\ 

We see now, more clearly than ever before, the im- 
portance of Paul Revere's first ride to Lexington. 



NOTE. 



Since this paper was read before the Bostonian 
Society, Mr. Wright has informed the writer that his 
grandfather, after he had told him the story about the 
Concord Fight, gave to him an old Powder-horn which 
he had used during the war. This powder-horn, he 
said, he took from a British soldier who had been 
shot on the retreat to Lexington, and whose body was 
lying by the roadside in Lincoln. Some of the other 
men, he said, took off his boots and some of his clothes. 
The powder-horn, Mr. Wright says, was quite a nice 
piece of work, and held just one pound of powder. It 
had a peculiar stopper, (probably a spring snapper, like 
some now known,) and at the larger end, on the under 
side, (when hung over the shoulder,) was engraved the 
English coat of arms, and on the upper side, what Mr. 
Wright says, they called the British Ensign, The bot- 
tom of the horn was made of brass, saucer shaped, with 
a hole half an inch in diameter, in the centre, serving 
as a tunnel, to pour in the powder, with a wooden stop- 
per. The horn had been used by Mr. Wright and his 
brother, in their hunting excursions, for many years, 
and they agree perfectly in the description of it. It 
was finally lost, by the brother who owned it, in the 
burning of his house some years ago. 



i6 NATHAN Corey's powder-horn. 

After having written the above, the writer was in- 
formed by Mr. Winsor, librarian of Harvard College, 
that there was a powder-horn, somewhat answering the 
above description, in possession of the Massachusetts 
Historical Society. The next day (June nth, 1885), 
the writer visited the rooms of the Society, in Boston, 
and was shown by Dr. Green, the librarian, several old 
powder-horns of a similar character, all of them quite 
elaborately engraved and similar in many respects 
apparently to that described by Mr. Wright, with the 
exception that these all appeared to be American 
powder-horns, as one of them seemed to say, "To be 
used in the cause of liberty." Mr. Wright's story of 
this old powder-horn which he had, and the way his 
grandfather came into possession of it, and its distinct 
resemblance to those in use at the time, give additional 
weight and interest to the original story that the Groton 
men were in the Concord fight, on the 19th of April, 
1775. The dead soldier was probably one of those 
buried in the Lincoln graveyard. 



APPENDIX. 



I. Towns engaged in the Events of the 19TH of 
April, 1775, with the Losses of each. 

spread of the alarm, 

Notwithstanding Gen. Gage's endeavors to keep his 
movement towards Concord very secret, though un- 
doubtedly known among his officers through Lord 
Percy, it spread very rapidl}/- after the troops began to 
move. By means of Dawes, it may have spread through 
Roxbury, Brookline, Brighton, Dedham, Cambridge, 
and Watertown ; from Charlestown and from Medford, 
it spread very rapidly to Reading, Stoneham, Lynn, 
Danvers, and Salem ; from Lexington, it went to 
Woburn, Braintree, Billerica, Newton, Weston, Fram- 
ingham, Sudbury, and other towns, bringing in troops 
from all of them at different times during the day ; 
from Concord, it spread in all directions, by means 
of the cannon and special messengers, bringing minute- 
men and others from all the neighboring towns at an 
early hour of the day. 

The news of the approach of the troops was received 
in Concord, by young Samuel Prescott,* whose escape 
from the British officers on the road is well known, at 
about three o'clock in the morning. The alarm was 
immediately given to the Committee of Safety and citi- 
zens, and by the ringing of the church bell. Messen- 



* Prescott, it is said, was afterwards engaged in privateering; was 
taken prisoner and carried to Halifax, where he died in jail. 



I« SPREAD OF THE ALARM. 

gers were sent to Lexington and to Watertown, to obtain 
further intelligence. The Lexington messenger returned 
with intelligence of the firing, but did not know whether 
bullets were used or not. At this time also messengers 
were sent " to Hopkinton to alarm the people in that 
direction ; and other messengers were sent to other 
towns with the intelligence ; and the alarm spread like 
electric fire from a thousand sources, and produced a 
shock that roused all to action." 

"The news," Mr. Dana says, "spread with a rapidity 
almost preternatural ; at noon, that day, a courier rode 
into Worcester, his jaded horse falling exhausted at the 
meeting-house steps, and proclaimed the tragedy at 
Lexington ; and the minute-men, after prayer from their 
pastor, set out on their march for Cambridge." It was 
expressed from Boston to Newburyport, and thence to 
Portsmouth ; and expresses were also sent to Newport 
and Providence, thus spreading the alarm in all direc- 
tions. In Connecticut, after the courier had galloped 
through the State, getting a fresh horse in every town, 
Gen. Hawley says: "forty-three towns started out 
ninety-three companies, containing thirty-six hundred 
men, for Boston." Gen. Putnam left his plough (as did 
Nathan Corey,) and came to meet the enemy. "The 
men of New Hampshire," it is said, "were on their way 
to Concord and Lexington before night, on the 19th of 
April, 1775." 

It is very clear that a movement of some kind, looking 
to the protection of the rights of the people, was made 
in every town reached by the news during the day. 
And expresses were also sent to New York and Phila- 
delphia. In fact, it is almost true to say, the event 
awakened the country to the true interests and rights of 
the people, — and in this sense it led to the establishment 
of a government, and the independence of the country. 



TOWNS PRESENT OR INTERESTED. 



19 



On occasion of the Centennial Celebration, at Concord, 
in 1875, invitations were sent to forty-seven different 
towns, and adding Marlborough and Stoneham, (acci- 
dentally omitted,) makes the number forty-nine. The 
intention expressed was to invite those whose citizens 
" actually bore arms in Concord, on the 19th of April, 
1775, or whose men participated in the events of the day 
elsewhere." The first-named class includes, — 

Acton, Chelmsford, Littleton, 

Bedford, Concord, Stow, 

Billerica, Groton, Sudbury, 

Carlisle, Lincoln, Westford, 

making twelve (12) towns known to have been repre- 
sented at the North Bridge or elsewhere in the town. 
To these were added by the Committee, as invited, — 



Framingham, 

Lexington, 

Lowell, 

Lynn, 

Lynnfield, 

Mavnard, 

Medford, 

Melrose, 

Needham, 

Newton, 

Norwood, 

Peabody, 



Pepperell, 

Reading, 

Roxbury, 

Salem, 

Somerville, 

Wakefield, 

Waltham, 

Watertown, 

Wayland, 

Weston, 

Winchester, 

Woburn, 



and to these the Committee intended 



Arlington, 

Beverly, 

Belmont, 

Boston, 

Boxborough, 

Brookline, 

Burlington, 

Cambridge, 

Charlestown, 

Dan vers, 

Dedham, 

Everett, 
thirty-six (36) ; 
to add, — 

Stoneham, Marlborough, Waverley (3), 

making the whole number fifty-one (51). And to these 
are still to be added, — 

Dorchester, Maiden, East Sudbury, 

Milton, Chelsea, and 

Harvard, Holliston, (7) 

the two first-named certainly, and the others probably, 
making the whole number of towns, — as at present 
divided and incorporated, — interested, more or less 
actively, in the events of the 19th of April, 1775, 
fifty-eight (58). 



20 



KILLED AND WOUNDED. 



TOWNS. 


'6 




-a 
TOWNS. " 1 § 




3 


o 

I 




w .,° 


Acton, .... 




1.3mn, .... 


4' 2 


Arlington, (Meuotomy) 




3 




Lynnfield, . 






I 




Bedford, . . . 




2 


I 


Lexington, 






10 


10 


Beverly, . . 






I 


3 


Medford, . 






2 




Billerica, . 








2 


Needham, . 






5 


2 


Brookline, 






I 




Newton, 








I 


Cambridge,*. 






3 


I 


Salem, . 






I 




Charlestown, 






2 




Stow^, 








I 


Chelmsford, 








2 


Sudbury, . 






2 


I 


Concord, . 








5 


Watertown, 






I 




Dan vers, . 






7 


2 


Westford, . 










Dedham, . 






I 


I 


Weston, 










Framingham, 








I 


Woburn, 






2 


3 


Groton, . 










27 Towns, 


SI 39 



In addition to the above were five missing ; two from 
Cambridge, and one each from Danvers, Roxbury, and 
Lynn ; but these were afterwards exchanged. 

The British loss is reported as sixty-five killed, one 
hundred and eighty wounded, and twenty-eight prisoners, 
in Holmes' Annals ; while .an English account reports 
seventy-three killed, one hundred and seventy-four 
wounded, and twenty-six missing ; total, in both cases, 
two hundred and seventy-three. 



* The statement is that six of the killed belonged to Cambridge, and 
their names are inscribed on the monument at Cambridge, the three 
first named as buried there, and the three others as buried at Menotomy, 
(West Cambridge afterwards, and Arlington at present,) so that these 
latter names appear on the monument at Cambridge, and also on that 
at Arlington. In the above, three are given to each town. 



TOWN NOTES. 21 

Arlington, {Afeuoiomy.) " More were killed on both 
sides within our limits than in any other town ; at least 33 of 
the Americans, and probably twice that number of the British . 
fell in West Cambridge," (Menotomy.) — [S. A. Smith.] 
Here, Gen. Heath says, "a musket ball struck a pin out of 
the hair of Dr. Warren's earlock." 

Bedford had two companies at the Concord Fight, and 
" they were among the eight of the foremost companies that 
withstood the British at the old North Bridge." The captains 
of both companies were killed : Capt. John Moore, at the 
bridge, and Capt. Jonathan Wilson, on the retreat. It was 
proposed, in 1S79, ^"^ erect a monument to the revolutionary 
heroes of Bedford. 

BiLLERiCA. Nath'l Wyman, of Billerica, was killed on the 
road below Brooks' tavern. 

Carlisle. At the Concord Centennial, the citizens of 
Carlisle carried in procession a banner, bearing the inscription, 
"Joseph Spaulding, of Carlisle, fired the first gun at Concord, 
April 19, 1775. That shot was heard round the world." 

Charlestow^n had two persons killed at the latter end of 
the fighting, James Miller and Capt. Wm. Barber's son. 

Danvers. Danvers, it is said, sent a distinguished com- 
pany of over a hundred men, who marched (or rather ran) 
sixteen miles in four hours, and suffered in the engagement 
more than any other company, except Capt. Parker's, at 
Lexington. 

The Essex Regiment, Col. T. Pickering, (740 strong,) 
reached Winter Hill late in the afternoon, or otherwise it 
might have captured the whole British force, as the men were 
utterly exhausted. 

Lincoln, Some of the minute-men of Lincoln (alarmed 
by Prescott) were out early enough to join the Concord men 
and march down the road before the British arrived. When 
the British were approaching, Eleazer Brooks, one of them, 
said, " Let us stand our ground ; if we die, let us die here ! " 
Capt. Wm. Smith and Lieut. Sam'l Hoar were in command. 

Lynn. "How many of her. sons were there, (19th of 
April,) she knows not to-day ; she is sure of Harris Chadwell, 
Ephraim Breed, and Timothy Munroe, and doubts not of many 
more as valiant for the right as they." — [Tracy's oration, 1S79.] 

Malden. On the memorable 19th of April, 1775, Capt. 
Blaney's company of seventy-five men promptly marched " to 
resist the ministerial troops." [ [. D. Green, oration on the 
200th anniversary of the town, May 23, 1S49.] 



22 TOWN NOTES. 

Marblkhead men came a little too late, but they reached 
the line of the retreating British at or near Winter Hill, with 
the Essex Regiment. 

Newtov, it is said, had three organized companies of 
minute-men, " all of whom [318 men] were present and took 
part in the battles of that historic day," marching twenty-eight 
miles. Among them was Col. Joseph Ward, who was in 
Boston at the time, and hearing the news went home, " ob- 
tained a horse and gun, and rode to Concord, to animate his 
countrymen and get a shot at the British." On the 17th of 
June, he served as aid-de-camp to Gen. Artemas Ward, and 
rode over Charlestown Neck to execute his orders. Besides 
the three companies, there were 37 volunteers, "who had 
passed the age for military duty, and some others." 

Ro'^BURY had 140 men in the field. Moses Whitney, Wm. 
Draper, and Lemuel Childs, (who kept the Peacock tavern,) 
had command of coinpanies. John Greaton, (another tavern 
keeper.) held a commission as Colonel, dated 1774^ 'ind signed 
by Samuel Huntington. Gen. VVarren and Gen. Heath, both 
of Roxbury, were on duty. One of the Roxbury companies 
marched four miles, (to Rev. Mr. Gordon and back,) to attend 
■prayers,, and lost one man in the fighting. 

Sudbury had two companies in the field, who arrived at 
Concord just before the British retreated from the Bridge, and 
joined in the pursuit down the road to Lexington. They were 
prominent in the fight below Brooks' tavern. 

Waltham. In January, 1775, the inhabitants voted that 
they would " all be prepared and stand ready equipt as minute- 
men." A company commanded by Captain Daniel Whiting, 
" participated in the fight at Lexington." In this company, 
Samuel Benjamin, " grandfather of Gov. Washburn, of Maine, 
and the Washburn family of the West," was made first ser- 
geant. Waltham also sent some powder to Lexington. 

Watertown. a very curious incident took place in Water- 
town, as related by a grandson of the prominent actor : a 
British soldier came down the road on horseback and inquired 
the way to Boston. Mrs. Barnard, who had been notified that 
the British were commg, went up to the man, seized the horse 
and his rider; accused him of "killing our folks," and took 
him a prisoner to the tavern. The town authorities kept him 
until he was exchanged. It turned out that he was wounded 
and stole a horse by the roadside to make his escape. The 
horse, it is said, was afterwards returned to its owner. Col. 
Stedman, of Cambridge, who had ridden to Lexington on him 
that morning. 



2. Monuments, etc., Erected to Commemorate 
THE Events of the Day. 



CONCORD MONUMENT,* 

The well-known Concord Monument, designed by 

Solomon Willard, is in the form of an obelisk, on a 

large square base ; is twentj^-five feet in height, was 

completed in 1836, and bears on the west side the 

following inscription, written by Rev. Dr. Ripley, cut 

upon a slab of white Italian marble : 

Here, 
On the 19th of April, 

1775' 
was made 

the first forcible resistance 

to British aggression. 

On the 023posite Bank 

Stood the American Militia. 

Here stood the invading Army, 

And on this spot 

The first of the enemy fell 

In the War of that Revolution 

which gave 

Independence 

To these United States. 



In gratitude to God, 

And 

In the love of Freedom, 

This Monument 

was erected 
A. D. 1836. 



* It was proposed to laj the corner stone of this monument on the 
19th of April, 1S25, the semi-centennial anniversary, when Edward 
Everett 'delivered the oration ; but owing to a disagreement on the 
question of location, the work was delayed for ten years. It was 
thought by many persons that the monument should be erected where 
the minute-men fell, and not where the British regulars fell. The 
erection of the Minute-man, on the opposite side of the river, in 1S75, 
has forever settled this controversy, and it was for this purpose that 
Mr. Hubbard left his bequest. 



24 MINUTE-MAN AT CONCORD. 



THE MINUTE-MAN. 

The Statue of the Minute-man first assumed sliape in 
clay, at the hands of Mr. Daniel C. French, in 1873, 
and was soon after accepted by the committee and the 
town. Through the influence of Judge E. Rockwood 
Hoar, then representative in Congress, ten pieces 
of condemned brass cannon were granted to the town, 
and sent to Chicopee, Mass., where the Statue was 
cast from the model prepared b}^ Mr. French. The 
expense of the work was partly paid from a bequest of 
one thousand dollars from Ebenezer Hubbard. 

The Statue was placed on its pedestal, and unveiled in 
the Celebration of April 19th, 1875. ^^ front, on the 
pedestal, are these lines from Mr. Emerson's ode : 

" By the rude bridge that arched the flood 
Their flag to April's breeze unfurled, 
Here once the embattled fanners stood 

And fired the shot heard 'round the world." 

On the rear face of the pedestal is this inscription : 

^775- 
Nineteenth 

OF 

April, 

1875. 



Landmarks. On occasion of the celebration of the 
250th anniversary of the settlement of the town of Con- 
cord, Sept. 12, 1885, the following revolutionary memo- 
rials were erected : on the Buttrick farm, a slab in the 
stone wall, bearing the following inscription ; 

" On this field the minute-men and militia formed before marching 
down to the Fight at the Bridge." 

On a boulder on the Boston road, over which the 
British went out of the town : 

" Meriam's Corner. The British troops retreating from the Old 
North Bridge were here attacked in flank hy the men of Concord and 
neighboring towns and driven under a hot fire to Charlestown." 





^4^^:^^^^^^' 



Co:^coiix) JVIASS. 



MONUMENTS AND MEMORIALS. 25 

LEXINGTON MONUMENT, 
At Lexington, besides the Monument, are bronze 
Statues of Hancock and Adams, the former by Thomas 
Gould, and the latter by Martin Milmore, both modelled 
in Rome, and both reached Boston, (though shipped a 
month apart, one by steamer and the other by a sailing 
vessel,) on the same day, and both reached Lexington 
just one hundred years from the time the originals 
arrived there from Concord, April, 1775. There are 
also in the Town Hall, Statues of a Minute-man and of 
a Soldier of the civil war of 1861, both from the studio 
of J. G. Batterson, of Harttbrd, Conn. 

INSCRIPTION ON THE MONUMENT. 

" Sacred to the Liberty and the Rights of Mankind ! 

The Freedom and Independence of America, 

Sealed and defended with the Blood of her Sons. 

This monument is erected 

Bv the inhabitants of Lexington, 

Under the patronage and at the expense of 

the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, 

To the Memory of their Fellow Citizens, 

Ensign Robert Munroe, and Messrs. Jonas Parker, 

Samuel Hadley, Jonathan Harrington, Jun'r, 
Isaac Muzzy, Caleb Harrington, and John Brown, 

of Lexington, and Asahel Porter, of Woburn, 

Who fell on this field, the First Victims to the 

Sword of British Tyranny and Oppression, 

On the morning of the ever memorable 

Nineteenth of April, An. Dom. 1775. 

The Die was cast ! 

The Blood of these Martyrs 

In the Cause of God and their Country 

Was the Cement of the Union of these States, then 

Colonies, and gave the spring to the Spirit, Firmness, 

And Resolution of their Fellow Citizens. 

They rose as one Man to revenge their Brethren's 

Blood, and at the point of the Sword, to assert and 

Defend their native Rights. 

They nobly dar'd to be free ! 

The contest was long, bloody, and affecting ; 

Righteous Heaven approved the solemn appeal. 

Victory crowned their arms ; and 

The Peace, Liberty, and Independence of the United 

States of America was their Glorious Reward." 

4 



26 MONUMENTS AND LANDMARKS AT LEXINGTON. 



LEXINGTON MEMORIAL LANDMARKS. 

The Town of Lexington has recently (1884-5) added 
a series of landmarks to memorable spots connected with 
the events of the 19th of April, in that town. These 
comprise three "memorial stones " to identify places of 
importance during the retreat; nine " memorial tablets," 
eight of them of wood, placed upon old houses and 
taverns, and one of slate indicating the spot where " the 
remains of those who fell in battle " are deposited ; and 
four "principal monuments." These last comprise a 
monument in memory of Capt. John Parker, commander 
of the minute-men, over his grave ; the next is a large 
boulder of twelve or fifteen tons, having carved upon 
one face a musket, powder-horn, and an inscription in 
the words of Capt. Parker, " Stand your ground; don't 
fire unless fired upon. But if they want to have war, 
let it begin here." The third is a monument at the south 
end of the Common, of Jonesboro' granite, representing 
a reading-desk with a closed book upon it, placed upon 
the site of " the first three meeting-houses built in Lex- 
ington." The inscriptions on the panels are historical, 
and include the names of the pastors down to 1846.* 
The fourth monument is in the High School yard, on 
the main street, and "is a unique and picturesque 
object," representing a large mounted cannon, carved 
in granite, placed on the spot where one of Earl Percy's 
cannon was placed in order to sweep the road. 

* During the war, from 1775 to 1783, the 19th of April was observed 
in these churches and sermons preached as follows : 1776, by Rev. Jonas 
Clark, the pastor; '77, Rev. Samuel Cooke, of Cambridge; '78, Rev. 
Jacob Gushing, of Waltham ; '79, Rev. Samuel Woodward, of W'eston; 
'80, Rev. Isaac Morrill, of Wilmington ; '81, Rev. Henry Cummings, of 
Billerica; '82, Rev. Phillips Payson, of Chelsea; '83, Rev. Zabdiel 
Adams, of Lunenburg. (jn this last occasion. Gov. Hancock, first 
Governor of the Commonwealth under the Constitution of 1780, was 
present, and received the honors of the occasion. The bells were rung, 
cannons fired, etc. 



MONUMENTS AND LANDMARKS AT LEXINGTON. 27 

1. Granite Boulder on the Common : 

"Line of the Mhiute-men, April 19, 1775. Stand your 
groLiiid. Don't fire unless fired upon; but if they mean to 
have war, let it begin here. — Capt. Parker." 

2. Parker Monument in the Grave-yard : 

" To the memory of Capt. John Parker, born July 13, 1729. 
Commander of the Minute-men, April 19, 1775. Died Sept. 
17, 1775. The town erects tliis memorial, 1SS4." 

3. Granite Reading Desk on the Common : 

" Site of the first three meeting houses in Lexington. 

1. Built 1693, when the town was a parish of Cambridge. 

2. Built 1 713, on the incorporation of Lexington. 3. Built 
1794; burned 1S46. This spot is thus identified with the 
town's history for 150 years." [On the other side are the 
names of the pastors, viz : Benj. Ksterbrook, John Hancock, 
Jonas Clarke, Avery Williams, Charles Bridges, VVm. J. Swett, 
Jason Whitman : 1693 to 1846.] 

4. Granite Mounted Cannon : 

" Near this spot Earl Percy, with re-inforcements, planted a 
field piece to cover the retreat of the British troops, April 

1. Memorial Stone, near Bloomfield Street: 

" On the hill to the south was planted one of the British field 
pieces, April 19, 1775, to command the village and its ap- 
proaches, and near this place several buildings were burned." 

2. Memorial Stone on the Concord Road : 

"At this well, April 19, 1775, James Hayward, of Acton, 
met a British soldier, who raising his gun said, you are a dead 
man, and so are you replied Hayward. Both fired, the soldier 
was instantly killed and Hayward mortally wounded." 

3. Memorial Stone near Fiske Hill : 

" This bluff was used as a rallying point by the British, 
April 19, 1775 ; after a sharp fight they retreated to Fiske Hill, 
from which they were driven in great confusion." 

On a Slab, near the Monument, it is said : 

" The remains of those who fell in the battle of Lexington 
were brought here from the old cemetery, April 20, 1S35, and 
buried within the railing in the rear of this monument." 



28 MONUMENTS, MEMORIALS, ETC. 



ACTON MONUMENT. 

The monument at Acton was built and dedicated 
October 29, 1851 ; oration by Hon. George S. Boutwell, 
of Groton ; poem by Rev. John. Pierpont. It bears 
the following inscription : 

" The Commonwealth of Massachusetts and the Town of 
Acton, co-operating to perpetuate the fame of glorious deeds 
of patriotism, have erected this monument in honor of 

Capt. Isaac Davis, 

and privates Abner Hosmer and James Hayward, citizen 
soldiers of Acton, and provincial minute-men, who fell in 
Concord Fight, 

Nineteenth of April, A. D. 1775. 

On the morning of tliat eventful day. the provincial officers 
held a council of wiw. near the Old Noith Bridge, in Concord, 
and as they separated, Davis exclaimed, '^ I havii't a man that 
is ajraid to goT and immediately marched his company from 
the left to the right of the line, and led in this first organized 
attack upon the troops of George III, in that memorable war, 
which, by the help of God, made the thirteen colonies inde- 
pendent of Great Britain, and gave political being to the 
United States of America." 

"ACTON, April 19th, 1851." 



On a gravestone, in Acton, is the following inscription : 

" In memory of Mr. James Hayward, son of Capt. Samuel 
and Mrs. Mary Hayward, who was killed [and killed his 
opponent] in Concord Fight, Apr. 19th, 1775^ aged twenty- 
five years and four days. 

" This monument may unborn eyes tell, 
How brave j'oung Hayward, like a hero fell, 
When fighting for his country's liberty, 
Was slain ; and here his body now doth lye. 
He and his foe were by each other slain, 
His victim's blood, with his, the earth did stain, 
Upon the field he was with victory crowned, 
And yet must yield his breath upon that ground. 
He express'd his hope in God, before his death, 
After his foe had yielded up his breath. 
O, may his death a lasting witness bye, (be) 
Against oppression, and bloody cruelty." 



MONUMENTS, MEMORIALS, ETC. 29 

ARLINGTON MONUMENT. 

(mENOTOMY and west CAMBRIDGE.) 

A plain granite obelisk, nineteen feet high, in 1848, 
was placed over twelve of the patriots killed in Menot- 
omy. Only three of the number belonged in the town, 
viz : Jason Russell, Jabez Wyrnan, and John Winship, — 
the same names appearing on the monument at Cam- 
bridge, erected in 1870. The twelve were buried in one 
grave, but their remains are now in a stone vault under 
the monument. 

LANDMARKS. 

These consist of five small monuments in different 
parts of the town. The first is in front of the Unitarian 
church, and consists of a granite column, four feet six 
inches high, two feet ten inches wide, upon a suitable 
base, one foot high, and bears the following inscription : 

"At this spot, on April 19, 1775, the old men of Menotomy 
captured a convoy of eighteen soldiers with supplies on its 
way to join the British at Lexington." * 

On the avenue above the town-house is the next, in- 
scribed, — 

"Site of the house of Jason Russell, where he and eleven 
others were captured, disarmed, and killed by the retreating 
British, on April 19, 1775." 

The next is on Russell Park, fronting Mystic Street, 
inscribed, — 

"Near this spot Samuel Whittemore, then So years old, 
killed three British soldiers, April 19, 1775. He was shot, 
bayoneted, beaten, and left for dead, but recovered, and lived 
to be 98 years of age." 

The fourth stone is near the Arlington Hotel, corner 
of Arlington Avenue and Mystic Street, inscribed, — 

" Here stood Cooper's Tavern, in which Jabez Wyman and 
Jason Winship were killed by the British, April 19, 1775." 

The fifth stands half a mile below the centre of the 
town, on the avenue near Tufts' Street, inscribed, — 

" The site of the Black Horse Tavern, where met the Com- 
mittee of Safety, in 1775." 

* Note.— "There were two wagons, one Io;ided with powder and ball, and the other 
with provisions, guarded by seventeen men and an officer, going to the army, when six 
of our men waylaid them, killed two, wounded two, and took the otficer prisoner: the 
others took to the woods, and we brought off the wagons." The wagons had been de- 
layed by the taking up of the bridge in Cambridge. 



30 MONUMENTS, MEMORIAI.S, ETC. 



CAMBRIDGE MONUMENT. 

This Monument stands in the graveyard, near Union 
Square, between the two prominent churches, (Episco- 
palian and Unitarian,) on the west side of the Common. 
It is a very handsome work, of dark polished marble, 
about ten feet in height, on a granite base, and bears on 
its front the following inscription : 

Erected by the City 

A. D. 1870, 
To the memory of 
John Hicks, 
William Marcy, 
Moses Richardson, 

Buried here. 
Jason Russell, 
Jabez VVyman, 
Jason Winship, 
Buried in Menotomy. 
Men ok Cambridge, 
who fell in defence of 
The Liberty of the People, 
April 19, 1775. 
" O ! what a olorious morning is this ! " 



DAN VERS MONUMENT. 

On the 20th of April, 1835, the corner-stone of a 
monument to the memory of the seven young men of 
Danvers, who were killed at Arlington (Menotomy), on 
the 19th of April, 1775, was laid in that town, with 
interesting ceremonies and an address by Daniel P. 
King, Esq. The occasion was the sixtieth anniversary. 

The names and ages of the young men were as 
follows : Samuel Cook, 33 years ; Benjamin Daland, 
25 ; George Southwick, 25 ; Perley Putnam, 21 ; 
Jotham Webb, 22 ; Henry Jacobs, 22; Ebenezer Gold- 
thwait, 22. 

" Dulce et decorum est pro patiia mori." 



MONUMENTS, MEMORIALS, ETC. 3I 

PERSONAL MONUMENTS. 

Lincoln Monument. This is a broad, heavy slate 
stone, bearing the following- inscription : 

"Five British soldiers, slain April 19, 1775, were buried 
here. Erected by the town of Lincoln, 1SS4." 

Watertown lias a Granite Monument to the memory of 
Joseph Coolidge, the only citizen of that town that fell in the 
fighting of the 19th of April, 1775. It was erected in 1875. 

Medford has a beautiful Granite Monument " Sacred to 
the memory of John Brooks, who was. born in Medford, in 
the month of May, i75-2, and educated in the Town Schoob 
He took up arms for his country on tlie 19th of April, 1775," 
and served in the war ; and was GovcTnor of the State, 1S16 to 
1S33. Medford lost two men in the fighting. 

Lynnfield has a iSlonument in memory of Mr. Daniel 
Townsend, who was killed at Lexington, April 19, 1775. 

Westford. John Robinson, of Westford, a Lieut. -Colonel 
in a regiment of minute-men under Col. \Vm. Prescott, was a 
prominent man of the day ; and upon his gravestone it is said, 
"In i775i 1^^ distinguished himself by commanding the corps 
of soldiers who first opposed the menacing attempts of the 
British troops at Concord Bridge." 

GuoTONT. Monument to the memory of Capt. Abram Child, 
born in Waltham, and died in Groton, Jan. 3, 1S34, aged 93 
years. " He was a lieutenant among the minute-men, and 
aided in the Concord Fight." In 1779, at Stoney Point, he 
was the oldest captain in the service under Gen. Wayne. 

Concord. Li the old hill Burying Ground, at Concord, 
where it is supposed some of the British soldiers were buried, 
there stands a large gravestone in memory of Col. John 
Buttrick, who conimanded the militia companies which made 
the first attack upon the British Troops, at Concord North 
Bridge, on 19th April, 1775. " Having with patriotic firmness 
shared in the dangers which led to American Independence, 
he lived to enioy the blessings of it, and died May 19, I'jgi, 
aged 60 years." 

In the same cemetery is a gravestone to the memory of Col. 
James Barrett, son of Benj. Barrett, who was Colonel of the 
regiment organized in March, 1775, and was in command on 
the 19th of April, though then 64 years old. 

Two British soldiers, killed at the Bridge, were buried beside 
the wall. The grave is now enclosed by stone posts and iron 
chains, the work of some English citizens of Waltham, in 
1S75 ; and cut in the wall are the words : "Grave of British 
soldiers." Others were buried in the town graveyard. 



32 ENGLISH ACCOUNTS CONCLUSION. 

WHAT IS SAID OF THE DAY. 

The fight at Concord Bridge, followed as it was by a continuous 
warfare along the road to Charlestown, was the inauguration of the 
war which secured independence to the country. ''Everyone of the 
towns whose inhabitants participated in the events of the iglh of April, 
1775, would have a story to tell, and would desire that the heroes of 
their own neighborhood should receive particLilar honor." " Whoever 
died on that day, standing in arms for his country's defence, is a 
sharer in the glories of the fight and the victory." — '[^Concord 
Cenicn}nalP\ 

ENGLISH ACCOUNTS. 

In England, says a letter from London, "the intelligence, so con- 
trary to the expectations of the government, * * * * has panic- 
struck the administration and their tory dependents." 

"The rebels were monstrous numerous, and surrounded us on every 
side. We killed some hundred and burnt their houses." 

" Lord Percy had about 1800 men on the march from Lexington to 
Charlestown, while beyond Lexington the enemy was less than 800, 
and as the Americans seemed to fall from the clouds, the numbers 
opposed to each other, below Lexington, was about three times those 
above Lexington." 

When Percy's recruits went out through Roxbury, " the band played 
Yankee Doodle; " when they came back, one asked his brother officer, 

" how he liked the tune now." " D n them, (said he,) they made 

us dance it till we were tired." 

" Even the people of Salem and Marblehead, above 20 miles off, had 
intelligence and time enough to march and meet us on our return; 
they met us somewhere about Menotomy, but they lost a good many 
for their pains." {^Diary of an unkvo-Mu British o'fficer.'\ 

"The troops were all the remainder of the day on their retreat to 
Charlestown, and many of the officers who have returned, say they 
never were in a hotter engagement." ^Private Ictier.'] 

Stedman says, when the retreating troops reached Lexington, "they 
were so much exhausted with fatigue that they were obliged to lie down 
for rest on the ground, their tongues hanging out of their mouths, like 
those of dogs after a chase." [Things were worse at Charlestown : 
they had all travelled from twenty to tiiirty miles, without rest or food. 
Their supply of food and ammunition had both been captured, and they 
had a remarkable escape from Col. Pickering's regiment.] 

CONCLUSION. 

After the 19th of April, the Provincial Congress sent an address 
to the People of England, in which they assure the King of their 
determination " not tamely to submit to the persecution and tyranny 
of his evil ministry:" and add, ^^ af pealing to Heaven /or the justice 
of our cause, we determine to die or be free." 



PUBLICATIONS BY THE SAME AUTHOR. 



InmigiiratioH of the Statue of Warren, by the Bunker Hill 
Monument Association, June 17, 1857, bj Wm. W. Wheil- 
don, Editor, with illustrations. 8vo. pp. 224. Boston, 1865. 

Memoir of Solo?no7i Willard. Architect and Superintendent 
of the Bunker Hill Monument. By William W. Wheildon. 
8 vo. with plates, pp.288. Boston, 1865. 

Contributions to Thought. By William W. Wheildon, Fel- 
low of the A. A. A. S. 12mo. pp. 236. Concord, 1875. 

Curiosities of History^ Boston, September 17, 1630 — 1880. — 
By Wm. W. Wheildon. 12mo. pp. 141. |;1 ; paper 75, 

New History of the Battle of Bunker Hill, June 17, 1775. 
Its purpose, conduct and result. By W. W. Wheildon. 1875 

Siege and Evacuation of Boston and Charlestown, with a 
brief account of Pre-Revolutionary Buildings, pp.64. 1876. 

Sentry or Beacon Hdl :- The Beacon and the Monument, of 
1635 and 1790. By William W. Wheildon. 8vo. pp. 120, 
with maps, heliotypes and engravings. .$1. 

Paul Revere' s Signal Lanterns, April 18, 1775. By Wil- 
liam W. Wheildon. 8vo. pp. 64. Concord, 1878. 60 cts. 

New Chajjter in the History of the Concord Fight, with an 
appendix of the towns engaged and account of the monuments, 
&c. to commemorate the events of the day. pp.32. 1885. 

Letters from Nahant. Historical, Descriptive and Miscella- 
neous. By William W, Wheildon. 12mo. pp. 48, with en- 
gravings. Press of the Bunker Hill Aurora, 1848. 25c. 

Arctic Regions. 1. Atmospheric Theory of the Open Polar 
Sea, witli remarks on the Present State of the Question.— 
12mo. pp. 34. 2. Atmospheric Theory of the Open Polar 
Sea and an ameliorated climate. 8.vo. pp. 26. 3. The Arc- 
tic Continent, or Wrangell's Land, with government map.— 
By William W. Wheildon. Re-printed from volumes of the 
American Association for the Adv. of Science. 25 cts each. 

Scientific Excursion Across the State of Iowa, from Dubuque 
to Sioux City and Springvale (Humboldt). 8vo. pp. 11. By 
William W. Wheildon. Concord, 1873. 

The Maverick Bridge, (proposed). Argument before the U. 
S. Commissioners at the Charlestown Navy Yard, Sept. Oct. 
1868. By William W. Wheildon. 8vo. pp. 40. 

The Amei^ican Lobster, (Homarus Americanus). Natural 
Historv and Habits. By William W. Wheildon. 8vo. pp. 10. 

.Bunker" Hill Aurora, weekly, May, 1827 to October, 1870, 
edited by Wm W. \Yheiklon, Charlestown. [44 volumes in 
the Charlestown Public Library.] 

Sent post-paid 071 receipt of price by LEE ^- SHEPARD, or by the author 
Post Office Box. 229, 'Concord, Mass. 



LIBRftRY OF CONGRESS 



011 712 426 5 



L 



Siege and Evacuation of Boston and 
ChaTlestoivn, with a brief account of Pre-Revolu- 
tionaiy Buildings. By William W. Wheildon. 8vo. 
pp. C4. 50 cents. 

" In this pamphlet Mr. "Wheildon has gathered together, and put in a compact 
and readable form, such records as are accessible of the stirring events of a hun- 
dred years ago. Nothing could be more timely ; and whoever wishes to acquaint 
himself with the events of 17th of March, 1776, will find what he seeks told in 
a simple and modest style between the covers of this pamphlet." — Hoitoii 
Journal. 

" His account of the Siege and Evacuation of Boston and Charlestown, is by 
far the most complete and the best that has been prepared." — Index. 

"It is the most concise and accurate history of this interesting year of the 
Revolution published." — /TeraM. 

"To those who have read the history of the Battle of Bunker Hill, by the 
same author, William W. Wheildon, it is unnecessary to praise this work which 
covers a longer period." — Jf'ew Haven Pall adium. 

" It is an interesting story as told by Mr. Wheildon, who gives the chief 
credit for the conductof the military operations, not to Washington, but to the 
Massachusetts ofUcers." — Boston Daily Advertiser. 

Sentry or Beacon Hifl: Its JBeacon and 
Mo a umentf 1 635 to 1 8 1 2 . By William W. Wheil- 
don. 8vo. pp. 120, witli plans, heliotype plates, and 
engravings. 75 cents and $1.25. 

EXTRACTS FROM SOME PRIVATE LETTERS. 

"I am delighted with your new book Beacon Hill, &c. Nothing of the kind 
ever pleased me more." 

" I have read and re-read your exhaustive history of Beacon Hill. It revives 
a thousand delightful memories of my boyhood ; all its statements tally with my 
recollections." 

" I enjoyed the reading of your book on Beacon Hill very highly. You have 
certainly made a careful study of that field, and have given me a large amount of 
information. I know much more about ancient Boston tliah I did before." 

Paul Revere^s Signal LanternSf April 18, 
1775. By William W. Wheildon. 8vo. pp. 50. 
Concord, 1878. 

" Mr. Wheildon considers, one by one, the various statements that have been 
made and theories broached concerning the display of lights frorn the Old North 
Church, on the evening of April 18, 1775. The conclusion to which he arrives 
seems to be supported by both documentary evidence and local tradition." — 
Transcript. 

"An occasional dt)ubt has been thrown on the authenticity of the story; but 
the author of this little pamphlet has evidently made a patient investigation, and 
appears to have established a vei-y satisfactory case." — Daily Globe. 

" Th^ author introduces many fresh facts having a direct bearing upon the 
once disputed position of the lanterns : and in consequence has produced a work 
of great historical value, in addition to many others of a similar nature from his 
pen." — Commercial Siilletin. 

[Since the publication of this pamphlet, the city committee have purchased 
two hundred copies of the work.] 



